Tactics
by Techno Skittles
Summary: Ren and Blake. Two of the quietest people at Beacon both have something to bond over: their partners. For RWBY Relationship week, Day One


_{It wasn't easy, But nothing is, no}_

Everyone knew that the quiet and reserved Blake wasn't one for extensive conversation and typically expected only a few words out of her at a time. She was more of an observer, watching from the shadows or the sidelines, preferring to watch other people interact with each other rather than include herself. Her social butterfly of a partner tried to drag her into a conversation from time to time, only to be shut down by a clipped sentence or a single-worded answer. The Faunus girl appreciated Yang's effort, but she also made it very clear that she just wasn't the chatty type.

Most of her communication was through looks. Her facial expressions always spoke louder than her voice and were much stronger than any words she could put together. Thankfully, Yang had picked up quickly on this as well, making it easier for them to communicate properly as teammates (although Ruby and Weiss were still catching on).

That was why Lie Ren couldn't believe his ears when he heard her soft-spoken voice ask him, "So how long have you and Nora known each other?"

They had both been sitting in the gym as their partners decided to have a mock fight on the combat floor. Yang and Nora had dragged Blake and Ren respectively to come and spectate the fight, each hoping to impress their partner with their brute strength and excellent fighting skills. As both of the loud girls' partners were so quiet, they didn't put much of a word in to protest and let themselves be dragged along. Now they sat next to each other, Blake with a book in hand and Ren cleaning his weapons, refilling them with dust, occasionally looking up to see one of their partners land a hit before going back to their previous task.

Ren wasn't exactly one to talk much either (although the others pointed out that they heard his voice more often than Blake's), so he had thought that this time would pass by in silence between him and the dark-haired girl. Not only was she speaking though, but she had initiated the conversation.

He put down Stormflower, not wanting to seem rude after noticing she had put her book down, and looked up at his partner, watching as she dodged a high kick from Yang and used the opening to kick out her knee, knocking the blonde down. "Years," he finally said. "We grew up together."

Blake nodded and was silent once more, deciding to watch the fight as well. Yang had quickly gotten back up after rolling away after Nora's last blow and use her weight to push Nora back. She didn't say anything else for awhile and Ren suspected their short-lived conversation to be over until he quiet voice broke the silence again.

"So how do you manage with her hyperactive personality all of the time?" She looked over at him with curious golden eyes, swirling cesspools of molten gold boring into him. "You seem to be an expert at it."

Ren chuckled at this with a slight shake of his head. "I wouldn't say 'expert.' I've just grown used to all of Nora's antics by now." Nora feinted a punch before landing a kick flat on Yang's stomach, smiling a triumphant grin as the breath whooshed out of her in a wheeze. "Sure, she's unpredictable, but I've come to expect that…if that makes any sense."

Nora was unpredictable alright, almost as unpredictable as one could get. He never knew what to expect from her or what to look out for that would give away her intentions. Just when he thought he had figured her out, she would pull something totally drastic and contradicting to her usual personality that the quiet boy often suffered from whiplash. For some time he had categorized her as bipolar, but found even then that wasn't enough to describe Nora's eccentric mood swings and personality.

Over time, he realized there just was no making sense of her. Nora was Nora, she did what she wanted, when she wanted, and however she wanted. There was no category for her, not even one that was conformed to her because she'd find a way to break out of that as well.

Once Ren accepted this fact, he found that dealing with her became much simpler.

"I know it probably sounds weird," he continued, "But as long as I let Nora do her own thing and don't question it, being with her is a lot less stressful. Once I accepted that Nora is who she is and stopped trying to make sense of it, our friendship strengthened and we've become closer since then."

A small smile found its way onto Blake's face as she listened to Ren. She had the utmost respect for someone who could call Nora their best friend; it had to be difficult and exhausting to keep up with someone with so much energy. Sure, she had Yang, who was a bundle of adrenaline herself, but she could only imagine having to keep up with someone so child-like all of the time. Ren was a very patient man.

"Of course, that's not to say that she's always like that," Ren quickly added as if afraid he gave her the wrong impression of his partner. "She has her quiet moments as well, but they're so few and far between that it's not something worth mentioning sometimes."

Blake nodded in understanding and inclined her head to see as Yang blocked Nora's punched aimed for her chest and flipped her over her head. Nora landed with a loud bang and Blake would've been worried had she not looked up a split second later, grinning mischievously. "Yang's not quite as hyperactive as Nora is, but she's definitely a handful." She turned back to look at Ren. "I was hoping you could give me some pointers for the times it becomes overwhelming."

"Pointers?" Ren repeated. He scratched the back of his head. "Pointers on what?"

"For instance, what do you do when Nora starts getting too…violent?" Yang's biggest problem was keeping her temper in check. Typically, this wasn't much of an issue during combat, however it became a major problem in more domestic cases.

"When she becomes too violent?" Ren looked over at Nora, skillfully dodging all of Yang's advances. "I guess I just let her let off some steam." When Blake only quirked a single eyebrow at his answer, he elaborated. "You know, let her go off on a rampage. If I try to contain her, it only adds fuel to the fire and makes things worse. Sometimes I offer to be her punching bag, but most of the time I bring her in here and let her have at it with whatever. Telling Nora to calm down has to be one of the most counterproductive things ever."

Blake made a mental note to bring Yang to the gym the next time she lost it. She prepared another question to ask him but the sound of breathless laughter made her stop mid-thought and both brunettes turned simultaneously to see their partners sitting on the floor, drenched in sweat and covered in nicks and bruises. They were congratulating each other through gulps of air and wheezed laughter and Ren and Blake knew that their little match was over. Blake sighed and picked up her book as Yang shuffled over to her with Nora right beside her, both giggling like idiots and clearly worn from their fight. She and Ren stood up to greet their partners, listening to them retell their fight in great detail enthusiastically as the group of four left the gym.

The next morning, Ren sat down next to Blake at breakfast. Noticing the sudden company, she put down her book and rose an eyebrow in silent question to which Ren smiled.

"You know, Nora fell asleep as soon as we got to our dorm last night," he said. Blake silently chewed her food, looking at him as if asking for more. "It's the fastest I've ever fall asleep." He gave her a look as if asking her some obvious question and Blake furrowed her brow in thought.

Now that he mentioned it, last night Yang had also fallen asleep rather quickly last night, only taking time to change out of her sweaty clothes. The blonde had been snoring long before Blake had even finished with her shower. On a typical night, Yang found entertainment in listening to her CD's or even asking her partner random questions, but last night she hadn't even breathed so much as a "goodnight" before passing out face first into her pillow.

"You know, Yang fell asleep rather quickly last night too," Blake said and just as she put two and two together, Ren's lips curved in a smirk. "Are you…thinking what I'm thinking?"

"If you mean that our partners need a new training regimen to improve their strength and sloppy fighting skills, then yes I am." Ren stood up and gave Blake a sly wink, something so out of place for him it floored the brunette. "See you in the gym tonight?"

Blake caught on quickly and offered her own wink coupled with a mischievous grin. "We'll be there, no doubt about it."

* * *

**Author's Comments:**

**So this is my day one entry for RWBY Relationship week. I was actually really glad I got these two because I can just imagine them bonding over sharing tactics of dealing with their rather energetic partners (Weiss will eventually join in once she learns what these two are up to).**

**But no really, I feel like these two are like those moms that discuss and share how they deal with their toddlers while said kids are wearing themselves out at the park. (Okay that's exactly what's happening in this fic you caught me.) **

**Next Relationship: Well here's a hint. They're both blonde and have something to do with Blake.**


End file.
